Three Shots
by Irene14
Summary: What if the gunman had fired more than one bullet? Spoilers for and tag to "Life Before His Eyes." Rated T just to be sure. Aftermath violence.


**_Three Shots_**

* * *

_Hi, thanks for stopping by!_

_A little different ending to "Life Before His Eyes". One-shot (well, actually it's 3, there's three bullets-I know, I know, bad pun). _

_My first NCIS fanfic on this site; un-beta'd. Reviews or PM would be awesome!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own NCIS. Just messin' with the characters a little ; )_

* * *

"You're too good to me, Elaine," Gibbs said as he gratefully sipped the steaming hot coffee.

"Hmm, I'm just waiting on a proposal, that's all," she replied, turning to put back the pot. He chuckled, taking another long drink. The chill of the morning was beginning to fade when he glanced around and saw someone leave a far booth. Turning back to his coffee, he noticed Elaine looking clearly worried as the man approached. He turned again and seeing the gun come out, instinctively got to his feet, drawing his sig.

"Federal Agent, put it down."

A young man stood before him, a myriad of emotions playing across his face. Anger. Fear. Betrayal. Most prominently, despair.

Gibbs recognized the teen and hesitated, Mike's words echoing in his ears, "It's your decision. What's it gonna be?" His eyes narrowed slightly.

Bam! Bam! Bam! In his agitated state, the gunman's hand jerked, pulling the trigger three times in rapid succession.

Instinctively Gibbs ducked to the side feeling a burn near his neck, then stumbled backwards as a second bullet tore into his right shoulder. The third buried itself in the floor, aim thrown off as the young man's whole body began to tremble, his arm too heavy to hold up. Gibbs slowly lowered his gun. "Steven," he said softly, his normally icy blue eyes filled with compassion. Seizing the moment of inaction, two truckers jumped off their stools, knocking the distraught teen down, snatching his gun away. Tears began to course down Steven's cheeks as he apologized over and over.

Gibbs tried to step forward but something wasn't right; the edges of his vision began to darken and he felt dizzy. Before he could catch himself his knees buckled, his fading consciousness barely registering a pair of strong arms that caught him before he hit the floor.

* * *

Seeing the gunman restrained, Elaine quickly grabbed several towels as she rushed around the end of the counter to see to the fallen agent. Kevin, an off-duty EMT, had moved forward in time to catch Gibbs as he fell, gently lowering him to the ground. Already he was removing the older man's coat, breathing a quick prayer of relief when he saw the exit wound where bullet had gone completely through. His partner Jim called for an ambulance as Kevin packed the wounds with folded towels. Gibbs moaned softly. "Elaine, keep him quiet," Kevin said as he applied pressure .

"Gibbs honey, you just lie still now," she said in a calm voice, taking hold of his hand. "Ain't no one gonna hurt you." She picked up his phone where it had fallen from his pocket, and dialed the first name on the list.

"Yes boss?" a young man answered.

"This is Elaine, honey. You better get here, your boss has been shot, and we have the gunman. The EMTs are already on their way." Apprehension was evident in his voice as the young man asked for directions.

* * *

McGee drove through traffic as fast as he dared, punching up Tony's number.

"Geesh, Probie, I'm not late yet," Tony teased. "Oh, wait, Ziva put you up to. . ."

"Tony, Gibbs is shot," Tim interrupted breathlessly.

"What happened?" Tony was suddenly serious.

Tersely, Tim relayed what little facts he knew, giving Tony directions to the diner. "Call Ziva, I'm almost there."

"Got it."

Tim ended the call as he pulled up next to the ambulance, then rushed inside, glancing around out of habit to ensure the area was safe. "Steven?" he said, shocked to see the young man restrained by the truckers, a gun laying on the counter. Quickly he turned to see Gibbs on a backboard, trying to sit up as the EMTs attempted to restrain him. "I'm Special Agent McGee, NCIS," he said, flashing his badge as he crouched next to Gibbs. "Boss? Boss can you hear me?" Tim called.

Gibbs movements hesitated slightly as McGee's voice filtered through the fog. Wait, what was McGee doing here? The haze began to clear as Gibbs opened his eyes, focusing on the young agent.

McGee scooted closer, nodding to Kevin and Jim as they cautiously laid Gibbs down and moved back. Gently Tim rested his hand on the lead agent's uninjured shoulder. "Boss you were shot. We've got to keep pressure on the wounds to stop the bleeding, please quit fighting them."

Gibbs nodded as the EMTs buckled him safely on the backboard, then lifted him to the gurney. It was then he noticed Steven. The teen was slumped over in the booth staring at the floor, withdrawn from his surroundings and Gibbs felt a pang of remorse that things couldn't have turned out better.

Tires screeched and a door slammed as Tim held the cafe door open for the gurney.

"Boss, you ok?" Gibbs turned his head to see a worried Tony and Ziva approaching. He pulled the oxygen mask down. "Always," he replied. "Go. Take Steven in." He gritted his teeth as the Kevin applied pressure with another dressing, trying to stop the bright red stain from spreading.

"We need to go now," Kevin urged the agents.

"McGee, go with him," Tony ordered. "Ziva and I will get Steven and meet you at the hospital later."

"Don't forget to call Ducky and Abby," Tim replied, grateful to be able to go with Gibbs.

As they loaded him into the ambulance, Gibbs suddenly saw Mike cup his hand to light a cigarette from behind one of the EMTs. "Guess you weren't done yet, Probie," he chuckled, extinguishing the match. Gibbs closed his eyes as yet another wave of pain and nausea washed over him. Looking back, he saw Mike had disappeared as McGee climbed into the ambulance. The doors slammed shut and Gibbs settled back as they sped to the hospital, content to let McGee have his six.


End file.
